The winter nights had begun changing slowly.
Though cold still lingered across the Mauryan capital, the harsh storms had faded into quieter winds that drifted softly through palace corridors after sunset. Moonlight reflected faintly across rooftops and stone pathways while distant torches flickered against the darkness.
Inside his chambers, the brazier burned steadily beside the wall.
Warm orange light filled the room softly.
Rudura sat alone near the low table once again.
Échecs Humains rested open before him.
The black-covered book no longer felt merely unsettling.
With every chapter, it seemed to strip away another layer from the way humans understood themselves.
Tonight, another title rested before his eyes.
The More Clearly Men Understand Others, the Harder It Becomes to View Them Innocently
Rudura stared at the words silently.
Then slowly lowered his gaze toward the opening lines.
Knowledge deepens understanding… but often steals simplicity in return.
The brazier crackled softly nearby.
Rudura continued reading.
The child sees people as good or bad. The observant man sees fear, pride, loneliness, ambition, insecurity, and desire tangled together beneath every action.
That sentence lingered immediately.
Because almost at once, memories surfaced from his previous life.
Classrooms.
Friend groups.
Teachers.
Smiles.
Performances.
Rudura leaned slightly back while staring thoughtfully into the firelight.
He remembered how simple people once seemed to him.
Popular students were simply confident.
Strict teachers were simply harsh.
Kind classmates were simply kind.
But over time, details complicated those ideas.
The "confident" students often feared losing social status constantly.
Strict teachers carried visible exhaustion beneath discipline.
Even kindness sometimes contained loneliness or desire for approval.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The world had once felt simpler before observation deepened.
Rudura lowered his gaze toward Échecs Humains again.
Understanding reveals complexity where innocence once saw certainty.
That line connected sharply with countless memories.
Another surfaced immediately afterward.
A student from his previous life known for arrogance.
Most classmates disliked him instinctively.
Later, Rudura accidentally overheard him speaking privately with someone about intense pressure from family expectations.
The arrogance remained real.
But afterward, it no longer felt simple.
Interesting.
Understanding complicated judgment.
The realization settled heavily.
Outside, cold wind brushed softly against the palace windows.
Inside the chamber, the brazier flickered steadily.
Another memory surfaced.
Friendships.
As a child, Rudura once believed friendships existed purely through affection.
Later he noticed subtler things:
social convenience
shared status
emotional dependence
usefulness
insecurity
Not because friendships were fake.
Because human relationships were rarely built from only one emotion.
Interesting.
People themselves were mixtures of sincerity and self-interest simultaneously.
The realization lingered quietly.
Rudura rested one arm lightly against his knee while continuing to read.
The more clearly men perceive human nature, the more difficult it becomes to preserve naive admiration.
That sentence stayed with him immediately.
Because admiration changed after understanding.
Another memory surfaced.
Teachers.
As a child, teachers seemed unquestionably wise and composed.
Later, Rudura noticed:
favoritism
exhaustion
frustration
insecurity
inconsistency
Not because teachers were terrible.
Because they were human.
Interesting.
Knowledge removed perfection from people.
The realization felt strangely sad.
Another memory followed.
Popular students behaving differently around:
teachers
friends
attractive classmates
socially powerful students
At first, Rudura considered it fake behavior.
Now he understood something deeper.
Humans adapted socially constantly.
Identity itself shifted depending on surroundings.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The brazier cracked softly nearby.
Rudura slowly turned another page.
Observation often creates emotional distance before wisdom learns compassion.
That line lingered heavily.
Because it described something he himself had begun feeling.
The more deeply he observed people…
the harder it became to interact with simple innocence.
Another memory surfaced from his previous life.
A student helping others frequently.
Most classmates considered him genuinely selfless.
Later, Rudura realized the boy became visibly distressed whenever people ignored his efforts.
Interesting.
Perhaps kindness itself sometimes carried hidden needs for validation.
The realization complicated things further.
Did that make the kindness false?
No.
But no longer simple either.
Humans rarely acted from singular motivations.
Outside, clouds drifted slowly across the moonlit capital.
Inside the room, firelight flickered gently across the black pages of Échecs Humains.
Rudura leaned back slightly while thinking.
Then another memory surfaced unexpectedly.
School rumors.
As a child, Rudura once believed gossip spread because people were cruel.
Later he noticed:
insecurity
boredom
social bonding
envy
desire for attention
behind most rumors.
Interesting.
Even ugly behavior often emerged from ordinary human weakness rather than pure malice.
The realization made judgment harder.
Rudura lowered his gaze toward the next passage.
The observant man eventually notices that even sincerity often carries traces of self-interest beneath it.
That sentence unsettled him slightly.
Because it felt painfully realistic.
Another memory surfaced.
Students comforting sad friends publicly.
Sometimes genuine concern existed.
Sometimes social image existed too.
Sometimes both existed together.
Interesting.
Humans rarely operated through pure motives alone.
The realization connected sharply with palace life too.
Nobles bowed respectfully…
yet ambition hid beneath many smiles.
Servants obeyed loyally…
yet fear mixed with loyalty constantly.
Officials praised rulers…
yet self-preservation shaped every word carefully.
Interesting.
The palace itself seemed built upon overlapping motives.
Very few emotions existed independently.
The thought lingered heavily.
The brazier burned lower beside the wall.
Rudura slowly exhaled.
Then continued reading.
The danger of understanding others deeply is not hatred… but emotional exhaustion.
That line remained in his mind immediately.
Because once complexity became visible everywhere, simple emotional certainty disappeared.
Another memory surfaced from his previous life.
Arguments between friends.
As a child, Rudura instinctively chose sides quickly.
Later, understanding both perspectives became easier…
and choosing became harder.
Interesting.
Awareness complicated emotion.
The realization felt strangely lonely.
Another memory followed.
A teacher unfairly scolding a student publicly.
At first, the teacher seemed cruel.
Later Rudura noticed the teacher had spent the entire day visibly overwhelmed and exhausted.
The unfairness remained real.
Yet anger softened after understanding context.
Interesting.
Observation weakened simple hatred.
The realization lingered quietly.
Outside, cold wind moved softly through distant palace corridors.
Inside the chamber, silence settled warmly around the firelight.
Rudura turned another page slowly.
Men become isolated not only through suffering… but through seeing too much beneath behavior.
That sentence struck him deeply.
Because he understood it immediately.
The more clearly someone saw:
masks
insecurity
pride
hidden motives
emotional contradictions
the harder it became to interact carelessly.
Another memory surfaced from his previous life.
A student constantly mocked for seeking attention.
Later Rudura realized the boy often sat alone during breaks and desperately feared being ignored socially.
Interesting.
Even irritating behavior sometimes hid loneliness underneath.
The realization made people feel simultaneously more understandable…
and more difficult to judge simply.
Very difficult.
Rudura thought briefly about himself now.
About the palace.
About reincarnation.
About observation itself.
Sometimes he already felt strangely separate from those around him.
Not because he disliked people.
Because he noticed too much beneath their behavior.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The brazier flickered softly nearby.
Rudura lowered his gaze toward Échecs Humains again.
Wisdom begins by removing illusion. Maturity begins by learning how to live without needing illusion restored.
That sentence lingered heavily.
Because perhaps disillusionment itself was only the beginning.
Anyone could become cynical after seeing flaws.
The harder task was continuing to understand humanity without losing empathy entirely.
The realization felt important.
Another memory surfaced.
A friend from his previous life making promises he failed to keep repeatedly.
At first, Rudura considered him dishonest.
Later he realized the boy genuinely intended to keep those promises each time.
He simply lacked discipline and emotional consistency.
Interesting.
Humans disappointed others constantly…
often without malicious intent.
The realization made the world feel more tragic than evil.
Outside, pale moonlight stretched across the sleeping capital while cold wind drifted gently through distant archways.
Inside the chamber, the brazier crackled softly.
Rudura slowly closed his eyes briefly.
Then another realization surfaced quietly.
Perhaps innocence viewed humans too simply.
But cynicism simplified them too.
Reality existed somewhere painfully in between.
Humans were flawed.
Contradictory.
Selfish.
Kind.
Weak.
Sincere.
Often all at once.
The thought lingered deeply.
The room remained silent except for the steady crackling of charcoal.
Rudura lowered his gaze toward the final lines of the chapter.
The wisest men are not those who continue believing humanity is pure… but those who continue caring after discovering it is not.
Silence filled the room afterward.
Because the sentence felt heavier than the others somehow.
Not cold.
Not cynical.
Simply true.
Outside, moonlight covered the sleeping palace while winter wind moved softly through the night.
Rudura finally closed Échecs Humains gently.
Thump.
The chamber remained warm and still.
For a long while, he simply stared at the black-covered book silently.
Then quietly murmured into the firelit darkness:
"…Maybe wisdom is not learning that humans are flawed…"
"Maybe wisdom is learning how to keep loving humanity after finally understanding why it breaks itself so often."
(Continued in Chapter 86)